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09/27/2016 04:00 PMAfter a short reprieve, downtown construction will start up once again this fall. Elements of Phase II of the Downtown Center project, including hooking up newly installed subterranean electrical wires, removing old light poles, and the installation of new streetlights, are expected to get underway soon.
Phase I of the Downtown Center Project just wrapped up this July. Phase I of the project, which began in fall 2015, included renovations of the sidewalks and the center median downtown. Additionally, new light poles, tree grates, and bike racks were installed above new underground utilities and irrigation. The project was completed on time and within the $2 million budget allocated for the project.
Funding for Phase II of the project has been uncertain, however. Designated in the Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for $1 million, the town was hoping to receive a grant for the project. As grant funding has not yet materialized, the Board of Finance (BOF) voted Sept. 21 to spend $306,000 to move forward with certain parts of Phase II.
“We had an understanding that if we fell short on grant money that we would still do it,” BOF Chair Joe MacDougald said. “For $300,000, the poles come down and the lights come on by Christmas.”
First Selectman Tom Banisch said it is important to move forward with this section of the project.
“We want to get the poles down and the lights lit up,” he said. “People have been watching the construction…my perception of this whole things is if we really want downtown to look good, we need to bury the wires and pull the poles up.”
The timeline for the rest of Phase II is still uncertain. The second phase of the project currently includes reduction in U.S. Route 1 pavement width, decorative LED luminaire streetlights, bicycle racks, granite curbing, clay brick paver sidewalks, and additional tree plantings and incorporates enhancements to the Tuxis Walkway entrance and the walkway itself.
“We continue to try and get funding for different aspects of Phase II,” said Banisch. “The other thing is we have to take a look at what is planned versus what it would cost and see if we can adjust it at all to make it more affordable. There are some things we maybe don’t need and some that maybe we do.”
The town received a grant for the Tuxis Walkway earlier this year for $400,000 from the state’s Responsible Growth and Transit-Oriented Development Grant Program.
“We are in the planning stages” for the walkway, Banisch said. “There are several things that we want to accomplish with that money; one of them is the walkway itself…but there are also some minor structural things that need to be addressed...[P]art of the purpose of the grant was not just to repair it, but also to enhance its appearance to people who don’t know it’s there so we are going to be doing work to the entrances on both sides.”